New Cage Setup!!

my new cage setup all it use t b was a den water bowl and log now its pimp n shes always out around the alavera plant :)


http://img227.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cagexa9.jpg

That would be nice for a desert dwelling reptile, but Ball Pythons aren't from there. She will crush those plants and I can't see how the spikes on the Aloe Vera are safe for her. Live plants do not do well with heavy-bodied snakes.

She definitely needs another hide on the other side. Does that digital thermometer have a probe so you can measure the other side?

I would take out the plants and give her another hide and see how that goes.

i cringed at that comment...

im not near as experienced as him, BUT!!!

i would agree with the words, not so much the delivery. haha

seemed a little harsh.




definatly might want to think about that aloe vera plant...

i dont know about that bedding though, i dont see why itd be a problem... is it the bed a beast stuff? i used that for my tarantula back in the day... not on snakes though.

correct me if im wrong but i think the only BIG problem would be the plant with the spikes.

a hide and a waterbowl may seem boring... but look at the rack systems most breeders keep... its nothing fancy, the key is good environment and good sanitation.

Ball Pythons need at least two hides (one on each side of the gradient), a water dish and a proper substrate. Anything else you ad is for you, not your snake.

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Originally Posted by jwarriner

Ball Pythons need at least two hides (one on each side of the gradient), a water dish and a proper substrate. Anything else you ad is for you, not your snake.

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I don't think that's exactly true? I agree that the thorns are potentially dangerous to the BP, not to mention that the live plants are likely to get destroyed by a heavy bodied snake rather quickly. The OP definitely needs to get a second hide in there. Meet the basic needs first. But I think some of the "decorations" that get added to tanks can have benefits for the snake as well as looking nice, so they aren't only for the humans.

There are lots of threads to be found around here about how adding crumpled up newspaper can help a snake feel more secure. It definitely seems to have helped my baby girl! Doesn't look very attractive though.

An alternative that I want to try that I think will help with the snake feeling secure as well as looking pretty is to add one of those artificial plant garland vine like things they sell at craft stores. I plan to basically loop it around the open spaces on the floor of the cage and I think she'll be able to slither in-between and under some of the leaves. Right at the moment I'm going with the "don't fix what isn't broken" theory until I get a larger number of successful feedings in a row, so I'm sticking with the crumpled newspaper for the time being.

Plus I've seen quite a few postings about how their snake seems to like to climb a little bit. My girl has a piece of grapevine that she climbs on and under. There is one particular place on it that she likes to perch like a tree python. It seems like it provides exercise and perhaps some mental stimulation.

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Originally Posted by zx92027xz

i cringed at that comment...

im not near as experienced as him, BUT!!!

i would agree with the words, not so much the delivery. haha

seemed a little harsh.

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What are you talking about? That was a straight-forward, no-nonsense comment about his very inappropriate enclosure. I didn't say "GAWD That cage looks like crap, change it before your snake dies!" Did I? Nope.. I'm an RVT, I don't mess around, I don't sugar-coat things, and I come across in a matter-of-fact kind of way. It's the internet, you can't really have voice inflection on an internet forum like you can in person. I am always polite about things unless the person blatantly disregards my advice and does something stupid or dangerous.

Oh, and I'm female..

What does it matter that you're female? Anyway, regardless of whether or not you're no-nonsense, you should still take people's feelings into consideration, and since you obviously realize that voice inflection doesnt come across the intarwebs, you should be especially mindful.

I just hate when people are unnecessarily harsh. That said,

Plants, in my opinion are great. They provide, as someone said, mental stimulation and are "aesthetically pleasing" (that's such a corny phrase). But spikey plants ... eh, not so much. I dont think it matters if the plant gets crushed, but it should matter that it's a potential hazard. Switch it out for something like Devil's ivy. It grows like mad, so it'll look fancy and will continue to grow if the snake squishes it, plus it's got big heart-shaped leaves so it provides a sense of security, AND it's cheap and safe. I have a devil's ivy plant in my living room and my snakes constantly go for it. They love to tangle themselves up in the foliage.

Wow, I think I actually sound educated tonight. Must be this long-a** essay on postmodernism and totalization of history that I'm reading. *hangs self* -lol-

Edit: You said you were female because the second post called you male. My bad, holmes.

Wow.. I get jumped on wherever I go now.. How pleasant.. Makes me not want to participate much anymore.

Excuse me if I was taught by strict Veterinarians/Vet Techs. It's habit, and one I can't easily break(if I wanted to). How in the world can someone just insinuate that you are using a particular type of voice inflection in your post, when you're not?

I explained in my post that his setup was not ideal and I said why. I didn't gripe at him or give him bad rep or call his momma and say that he needs to find another home for his snake. He's not a young kid, I'm sure he can handle it.

All I did was state facts in a calm manner.. I don't see how that can be confused with yelling, screaming or causing a scene..

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Originally Posted by SatanicIntention

Wow.. I get jumped on wherever I go now.. How pleasant.. Makes me not want to participate much anymore.

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I am beginning to feel the same way.




The only thing that I would add to what everyone else is saying is that it is not necessary to have another hide in that enclosure. You have a visual barrier on the sides of the aquarium and that in itself will make your ball feel more secure.

the alaveri plant or w/e arnt sharp as the thorns on it r miss leading its actually like rubber and she seems to b more happy and like her tank more.. every time i bring her out to roam the couch she seams more active and wehn i go to put her back she will actually go in her self if i put her out side the cage so i cant c how she dosent like it if she seems to love it so much.. ne wways not all snakes r the same for there differnt every way there brought up.. may b ur sankes like dessert but mine smeans to love thease plants.. but wtf do i know.

Just have to put my 2 cents in support of Becky. Straightforward, yes. No nonsense, yes. Rude, I don't see it. Becky, I think you did fine.

I'm not sure I agree 100% about the spikes on an Aloe Vera plant, though. They really aren't thorns like a cactus has. I don't think they would do any harm to a snake. I had a THORNY cactus in with a bull snake for quite a while. The snake would crawl around/over the cactus on a regular basis with no ill effects. Disclaimer - A bull snake has MUCH, MUCH tougher skin than a ball python!!!!

Now, where I would be concerned with Aloe Vera is with the juice inside. I would think that any plant that has "medicinal properties" would be a plant to avoid in a reptile's enclosure. Really don't know how the snake might react to that should he break off a branch. Did you know that the active ingredient of Provent-a-Mite is actually extracted from Chrysanthemum plants?

Steve

i actually asked the girl from brawd way gardens (the huge plant place) and she said its fine for reptiles and igunanaws or how eva u spell it eat them for vitimens and that its quit healthy for all reptiles so she said itwould b a good idea if ne thing

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Originally Posted by Mindibun

since you obviously realize that voice inflection doesnt come across the intarwebs, you should be especially mindful.

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The people reading the posts have just as much of an obligation to remember that tone of voice doesn't come across and to not assume a nasty tone as a poster has an obligation to keep this in mind and try to avoid posting stuff that could be misinterpreted to sounder harsher than it was intended. And OPs that asked the question have even more of an obligation to try to interpret the answers as helpful rather than nasty. They asked for advice; they should be glad to get it in any form, even if it isn't sugar-coated.

Becky definitely comes across as straight-forward no-nonsense, and at times it can sound harsh. But I don't remember ever having the feeling that she was trying to do anything other than help people learn how to take care of their BPs. Yeah, there are times when she could have found a nicer way to say something and still get her point across. Personally, I'd much rather deal with that than to chase away someone who has lots of knowledge and is willing to share it.

About the aloe vera plant, I used to have one and got scratched by its thorns all the time. Maybe some varieties have less sharp thorns than others. If you can drag your arm across the thorns without getting a scratch then maybe it's ok.

I, for one, don't see how you're going to keep the cage clean when you have plants planted in the dirt. Also, those plants are going to need a form of UV light so they don't die. Those need it hot and arid, being desert plants, and Ball Pythons just won't thrive in those conditions.

If Matilda lived in the wild, she would be in a termite mound or similar burrow about 95% of her life.

Yup, if your from cali/desert climate, you would know that the different aloe plants can and will hurt when run into. Maybe the small and young ones don't hurt as much, but they do need much less humidity to thrive.

Also, I second hoo-t, Becky is a very straight forward shoot from the hip kinda girl. I like to pretend she's giving a class when I read her posts, they remind me alot of one of my professors. :D No offense Becky. :)

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Originally Posted by beer12

and she seems to b more happy and like her tank more.. every time i bring her out to roam the couch she seams more active and wehn i go to put her back she will actually go in her self if i put her out side the cage so i cant c how she dosent like it if she seems to love it so much.. may b ur sankes like dessert but mine smeans to love thease plants.. but wtf do i know.

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Keep in mind that they may seem alert and more active when you pull them out because they feel disturbed and are looking for a place to hide. Also i dont think the basic husbandry requirements of bp's will be met with your enclosure, so i agree with what everyone else has said, this is more of an environment for desert dwelling lizards or tortoises or something. I hope this makes sense. :2cent:

I would get rid of the Aloe plant for various reasons. The plant will die, the roots will rot, it need UV lighting.

I would do as others suggested as far as putting in another hide, perfecting your enclosure.

Then if you'd like to add plants, ad some Pothos plants. They are hardy plants, you could water one and stick it in a closet and it would still survive. They don't require much light at all, they provide a lot of cover. I use them in my crestie cages. That would be much safer than the aloe plant. They also help with humidity and keeping it around 50% to 60%.

Just use some small plastic containers to pot them in, and make sure you use Organic Potting soil for them.

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Originally Posted by beer12

the alaveri plant or w/e arnt sharp as the thorns on it r miss leading its actually like rubber and she seems to b more happy and like her tank more.. every time i bring her out to roam the couch she seams more active and wehn i go to put her back she will actually go in her self if i put her out side the cage so i cant c how she dosent like it if she seems to love it so much.. ne wways not all snakes r the same for there differnt every way there brought up.. may b ur sankes like dessert but mine smeans to love thease plants.. but wtf do i know.

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Your posts give me a headache. I find it disrespectful when someone doesn't take the time to at least try to type coherently in English. This isn't an AOL Chatroom full of 13-year-olds.

Secondly, if your python seems to love something that's exactly what it's doing. It's seeming to love, but not actually. Snakes do not love. The plant my help make your snake feel secure but no more so than any other numerous things will that would make better cage furnishing.

Lastly you've been warned to get rid of the aloe by people who obviously know a lot more than you. There is no argument you can make, having the aloe with your snake is dead wrong. Period.

Now if people want to whine about me being rude, please go right ahead.

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Originally Posted by jwarriner

Your posts give me a headache. I find it disrespectful when someone doesn't take the time to at least try to type coherently in English. This isn't an AOL Chatroom full of 13-year-olds.

Secondly, if your python seems to love something that's exactly what it's doing. It's seeming to love, but not actually. Snakes do not love. The plant my help make your snake feel secure but no more so than any other numerous things will that would make better cage furnishing.

Lastly you've been warned to get rid of the aloe by people who obviously know a lot more than you. There is no argument you can make, having the aloe with your snake is dead wrong. Period.

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Thank you....

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

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Originally Posted by Brimstone111888

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

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Fortunately you can call a vet out to put the horse out of its misery. No such luck with people. Although I do fantasize about such a utopia.

Wow what a thread, You know if you lose the plant that enclosure is fine. I don't see desert dwelling. if the substrait was sand that would be a different story. I go to Michaels the craft store and buy plastic vines for the display enclosures I have. They are easy to clean and you can hang them or drape them from plastic stick on hooks you can also get there. That way it can be sterilized and as said before snake trample plants no matter what kind. Just a tip if you were looking to brighten up the enclosure. Also as MPenn and others have said one hide is fine. Most of my balls move the whole hide around if they are to hot so. I try to go with a light easy to push around hide that is just me. What you have there works fine. Its all a learning process and even the experienced people here are still learning so no worries we are here to help right people!!!


Chuck

dun c what the big deal is about an alo plant still .. its not sharb i can rub the thorn down my arm and not even get a white line..and the plant isent in the snake dirt it has its own pot.. PS. the temps in new pic arnt real thats wehn i had the lid off its around 90 usually on that side.
DIFFERNT ANGEL PICS >>

http://img507.imageshack.us/my.php?i...scf0944cl0.jpg


http://img502.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picswb6.jpg

I dont think the plant is a hazard bc these snakes live in the wild and come across many more things that are worse than these little thorns... with that said would I personally have one of those in my tanks?? never... Even if you dont think its hazardous whats the point?? Pick up a fake plastic one a petco for 15$ and theres no guessing "is this going to have a negative effect on my snakes life"... In the end its your snake and if something does happen youll be the one paying the vet bill so do as you please.

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Originally Posted by beer12

dun c what the big deal is about an alo plant still .. its not sharb i can rub the thorn down my arm and not even get a white line..and the plant isent in the snake dirt it has its own pot.. PS. the temps in new pic arnt real thats wehn i had the lid off its around 90 usually on that side.
DIFFERNT ANGEL PICS >>

http://img507.imageshack.us/my.php?i...scf0944cl0.jpg


http://img502.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picswb6.jpg

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Great. You asked for opinions and you got some from some knowledgable keepers. If you don't take it, that's fine. What exactly do you want to hear?

nothing.. and i diddent ask for opinions i just said new cage setup lol ne ways iam keeping it the vets in canada st kitts said its fine so id rather listen to them then just reg ppl here..

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Originally Posted by beer12

nothing.. and i diddent ask for opinions i just said new cage setup lol ne ways iam keeping it the vets in canada st kitts said its fine so id rather listen to them then just reg ppl here..

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then infest the vet boards with your horrible grammar and horrendous spelling.

iam a 21 y/o firefighter omg i have bad spelling cry more plz?

21? your profile says your 19... lol

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Originally Posted by beer12

iam a 21 y/o firefighter omg i have bad spelling cry more plz?

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Profile says your birthday is February 4, 1988. So now not only are you an infantile child but you're a liar too? We're not the ones who should cry about your spelling, you're the one who looks like an idiot.

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Originally Posted by beer12

iam a 21 y/o firefighter omg i have bad spelling cry more plz?

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1) Your profile says you're 19.. liar or what?
2) You're a firefighter... you work FOR people but you are so arrogant to people on here, you won't even listen to people's advice that know more than you. interesting...
3) If you actually are 21 why do you spell like a 4 year old? And the grammar... pfft. Did you pass the 2nd grade?
Why won't you just shut up, listen to people and do what these experts tell you to do?!

That's all I had to say... :)

I really think a reprequiste of being on a forum should be some fundamental writing and grammar skills. I hate to call you out man, but your spelling does need some improvement. It would make it a bit easier to read through your posts.

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Originally Posted by beer12

nothing.. and i diddent ask for opinions i just said new cage setup lol ne ways iam keeping it the vets in canada st kitts said its fine so id rather listen to them then just reg ppl here..

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Why are you here.... :confused:

1 i never put my real age on a fourm
2 iam a high school drop out
3 thats y iam a fireman cuz u dont need a gr 12
4 iam here the sae reasons u r

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Originally Posted by beer12

1 i never put my real age on a fourm

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You just said it. haha.


Fix your enclosure dude, most vets aren't ball python experts. and a lot of the people on this site know what they are talking about when it comes to snakes. Just take the advice. (and 2nd grade..ha)

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Originally Posted by beer12

1 i never put my real age on a fourm
2 iam a high school drop out
3 thats y iam a fireman cuz u dont need a gr 12
4 iam here the sae reasons u r

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1. You just told us you were 21, your profile says 19 yet you never put your real age, so Im guessing the real age i somewhere around 12.

2. Why does that not surprise me, Ya know, if that was me, i wouldn't go bragging about it.

3. Well if your grammar is as bad in person as it is on the net, lets hope you never have a life saving message to report over your radios while in a burning building.

4. I highly doubt that. I'm here to learn more about ball pythons, and take advice from people more experienced than me so that I can take better care of my snakes and breed them to fund my hobby. You on the other hand, refuse to remove a plant that can be harmful to your snake, even though nearly everyone here says it could harm it and you should take it out.


Even with the spikes on the leaves aside, it doesn't matter if they're sharp or not. Aloe Vera plants have a liquid inside that has medical properties. If your snake was to break one of the branches the liquid could possibly be harmful to it. You say a person at a plant store told you it would be fine, go and ask the same person the gestation period of a female ball python. Or ask her how long you incubate the eggs, or in case she's a ball python expert but not when it comes to breeding. Ask her the correct temperatures to keep the ball python at, how about humidity, how about what an appropriately sized meal should be. She works at a plant store, that does not mean she is in any way qualified to give advice on a ball python. But hey what do I know, maybe tomorrow I'll swing by McDonalds and ask the guy at the drive through if my snake has a respitory infection...hell it'll save me a vet visit....

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Originally Posted by Holbeird

1. You just told us you were 21, your profile says 19 yet you never put your real age, so Im guessing the real age i somewhere around 12.

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hahahaha....i just read this thread, yea i'm 19 too but i don't make myself sound like an idiot man, and yes the people here have a lot of knowledge...if you want to take it, fine, if not then that's your prerogative...and i feel bad for your snake.

i follow this saying, it goes "keep it simple stupid"

the plants not simple ur snake needs more room it looks way too crowded. Wether the plant is safe or not isnt the issue, your snake barely has enough room to turn around.

Wow.

You'd really think that in a written medium, people would make the effort to communicate clearly. That abreviated speech adapted for cell phones and texting is reasonable when you are using a numerical pad and trying to minimize clicks and still communicate at speed. It has no place on a forum when you have a full-sized keyboard and plenty of time to compose your post.

1. Becky rocks. She knows her stuff and communicates it clearly with no fluff or padding for babies. She is not mean, she is practical. Recognize that, and take advantage of her knowledge.

2. Kicking idiots in the head, no matter how satisfying, doesn't actually make them smarter...they just get stubbornly resentful.

alo plants out.. bubble plant is staying.

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Originally Posted by SatanicIntention

Wow.. I get jumped on wherever I go now.. How pleasant..

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you go girl! :sweeet:


oh yea for the record i thought the delivery was perfect straight to the point and well needed............. :)

Becky knows whats up and should treated with respect.
She wasn't rude(and doesn't mean to be) just to the point.
Some people just want to hear what they want, not what they need to hear.

seeing as how I started the whole satanicintentions is mean thing... i feel as if i should clarify... haha

i wasnt trying to start some big shindig about the whole thing. i was just saying he was just trying to be a little more creative with his snakes habitat, theres nothing wrong with that. and he also posted the pictures, so you can see that he is open to suggestions. im not asking you to sugarcoat anything here, im just saying that not everyone is a veteran at this stuff.

you dont have to change the way you are for me or anyone.

and everyones comments are accepted here. we can all use the input of the veterans.

wow... ill be honest, i skipped the 4 middle pages and just went back to read them...

i am sorry if i insulted anyone. i was not trying to say that satanicintentions was a bad person or anything close.

overall i have been impressed with the sincerity of this site, it is 99% people helping people, who all have the same goals and hobbies.

this got to the point of youtube comment wars where people are just taking stabs at each other.

the original comment was correct and accurate.

id say just kind of think if you only had one snake and it was your first one ever, you dont really need anyone jumping on you for trying something different... you do need correction though. he got it. lets move on.

theres no need to attack his grammar or spelling or age or anything...

i mean... someones snake died the other day and i saw 3 pages of people sympathizing with them. personally, i thought that was over-the-top nice.

but id rather have that than this. haha

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Originally Posted by beer12

1 i never put my real age on a fourm
2 iam a high school drop out
3 thats y iam a fireman cuz u dont need a gr 12
4 iam here the sae reasons u r

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Is it just me or what. Why would a mod remove the drug references??
This is the perfect PSA as to why kids should stay in school and stay away from drugs. The OP is proving just what we have been trying to tell our children.